In traditional societies, a village was often built around a “commons,” a public space in which the shared life of the community took place. In today’s interdependent and complex world, the new commons includes diverse cultures and a wide variety of distinct institutions, as well as the oceans, the air, seeds, forests, water, and cyberspace. It is global in scope, yet personal in impact. Leadership today requires the ability to see patterns in complex systems, the interdependence of diverse communities, and morally ambiguous challenges. We can no longer survive by functioning as separate individuals or independent organizations. The art of leadership requires a connective imagination, an informed conscience, and practiced competence.

The Powers of Leadership retreat series convenes a diverse cohort of people across strategic fields to gain perspective on the currents of change moving in these times, to develop new insight, and to strengthen their skills and commitment to work on behalf of a more just, sustainable, and prosperous world.

Retreat Dates

October 19 to October 21, 2017: Seeds of Vocation and Purpose

January 11 to January 13, 2018: The Deep Waters of Renewal

April 5 to April 7, 2018: The Power of Creation

June 7 to June 9, 2018: The Fire of Fulfillment

Each retreat begins with dinner on Thursday and ends on Saturday afternoon.

Reflections:“For me this was a life-changing experience on the steep path to leadership. Powers of Leadership builds skills, wisdom, and community from people working with some of life’s greatest challenges.” – Director, Environmental Initiative, City Government

“The hidden unexpected value was in the conversations among people from many different sectors and the way we learn from each other. I am now able to act in new ways.” – President & CEO, Regional Health Care System

“POL empowers individuals to embrace the complex challenges in our world and lead with courage.” – Policy Advisor, City Government

“I came in burned out and wanting to recover my center. I left transformed and full of ideas for the next season of my career.” – Physician

“POL is a wake up call, an invitation to connection beyond the usual suspects of daily work routines, to share issues, challenges, changes, from global to regional, from professional to personal, from various business climates to natural cycles affecting human well-being, in support of leadership tasks and development perhaps not yet anticipated, with continuity, in the company of a thoughtful, caring circle of participants and energetic, sensitive, focused thinkers.” – Artist and Community Activist

Retreat Leadership

Craig Fleck is a consultant and coach with over twenty years’ experience building leadership capacity. His clients include many Fortune 100 organizations. Craig developed a year-long Leadership Development program for GE leaders in their Finance Division and developed change methodologies used globally by Sun Microsystems and 3M. He has worked in healthcare, education, government, non-profit and co-op sectors and has been designing and leading programs at the Whidbey Institute since 2002. Craig is a Master Certified Coach by the International Coach Federation.

Christie Lynk teaches at Seattle University and is Clinical Director in the Master of Arts in Existential Phenomenological Psychology Program. As one of the founders of The Seattle School, she brings twenty years experience in adaptive leadership. Christie currently serves on the board at the Whidbey Institute. Partnering with organizations and individuals through Conversations and Gatherings, Christie offers sabbatical intensives, contemplative retreats and consultation. Her teaching explores the realms of personal development, spiritual formation through Earth, Spirit and Community, and practices of restoration.

Additional Leadership

Larry Daloz is a Senior Fellow at the Whidbey Institute. He served as the first dean of the Community College of Vermont, and has taught at Lesley, Norwich, Harvard, and Columbia Universities. He is a double-award winning author of Mentor: Guiding the Journey of Adult Learners, and co-author of Common Fire: Leading Lives of Commitment in a Complex World.

Diana Gale is currently on the Leadership Council for Puget Sound Partnership and a senior lecturer at the Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs at the University of Washington. She has spent 20 years as a department director at the City of Seattle—most recently as director of Seattle Public Utilities.

Kurt Hoelting, author of The Circumference of Home: One Man’s Yearlong Quest for a Radically Local Life, is a wilderness guide, climate activist and meditation teacher. He holds a Master of Divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School, and is the founding Director of Inside Passages.

Sharon Parks is a consultant, speaker, and author in areas of leadership, ethics, and human development. Her most recent book is Leadership Can Be Taught: A Bold Approach for a Complex World (Harvard Business School Press). She served for sixteen years in faculty and research positions at Harvard University in the schools of Divinity, Business, and the Kennedy School of Government.

Stephanie Ryan has over twenty years experience consulting with the disciplines of organizational learning. She develops the capacity of her clients to address complex, chronic business issues where multiple points of view prevail. Her work spans the for-profit and not- for-profit domains, cultivating an ability to collectively inquire into the nature of systems and stories we want to evolve.